Spooky Spider Cake Recipe

Get ready to wow the crowd with this appetizing arachnid. By using different frosting techniques and traditional Halloween candy, you too can create this fun creepy crawler! —Gina M. Feger, Louisville, Kentucky

Nutritional Facts

Directions

In a large bowl, beat the chocolate cake mix, water and eggs on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes. Pour into the two halves of a greased and floured sports ball baking pan. Bake at 350° for 40-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Meanwhile, in another bowl, beat the white cake mix, water and eggs on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes. Pour into two greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool all cakes for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

For frosting, using a heavy-duty stand mixer, combine the shortening, 1/4 cup water and vanilla. Combine confectioners' sugar and meringue powder; beat into shortening mixture.

For base cake: Tint 2-1/4 cups frosting purple. Using a serrated knife, level tops of white cakes if necessary. Place one cake layer on a serving plate; spread with 1 cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining tinted frosting over top and sides of cake.

For spider cake: Using a serrated knife, level the rounded side of one chocolate cake; attach to cake circle with a small amount of black frosting. Spread top with 1/3 cup black frosting; top with remaining chocolate cake.

For legs, insert a toothpick into the ends of each licorice rope. Insert one end into side of spider; insert other end into top of purple cake. Garnish with candy corn.Yield: 18-20 servings.

Editor’s Note: Clear vanilla, meringue powder and the sports ball pan are available from Wilton Industries. Call 1-800/794-5866 or visit www.wilton.com. Use of a coupler ring will allow you to easily change pastry tips for different designs.

Originally published as Spooky Spider Cake in Taste of Home
October/November 2008, p28

"We have modified the directions to be clearer about adding the second cake layer to the base cake. The directions should include: Tint 2-1/4 cups frosting purple. Using a serrated knife, level tops of white cakes if necessary. Place one cake layer on a serving plate; spread with 1 cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining tinted frosting over top and sides of cake.

"This is a great recipe and I have made it several times. This is an honest mistak in which all humans make every know-and-again. Yes, she had forgotten to include the step to put the second layer cake on, but come on...lol...It is obvious...it's just common sense!! I mean..what else would you use the second layer cake for?!?"

"I made a similar cake for my daughter's Halloween party about 5 years ago and it has been the requested cake redux ever since. Instead of using chocolate cake for the body, I used red velvet cake and baked it in a Bundt pan. I made dark brown icing and filled the center of the cake with the icing prior to icing the rest of the cake, then covered the entire cake with brown tinted coconut. Chocolate licorice sticks were the legs, fruit leather became eyes, mouth, and tongue, and the whole cake was set on on a tray covered with brown and gray "pebbles" and tombstones in a graveyard. The kids love cutting into this gruesome blood red spider cake after a scary night of trick or treating!"